Same Course, Different Tournament, Same Result; Dutoit Leads TC Championship

COON RAPIDS -- The Class AAA portion of the state high school tournament was played less than two weeks ago, and Jon Dutoit emerged from the first round with the lead after shooting a 3-under-par 69. The Chaska senior -- and University of Minnesota recuit -- went on to earn co-medalist honors with a 36-hole aggregate of 142. (He and Moorhead senior Ben Welle were declared co-champions by the Minnesota State High School League, which does not play off for first place in either team or individual competition at the state golf tournament.)

On Saturday, the first round of the Twin Cities Championship was played at Bunker Hills. Except that the course was set up at just over 7,000 yards this time, 400 yards longer the high school set up, and the wind was more of a problem, gusting up to 20 miles per hour.

The result was precisely the same. Dutoit shot 69, and he's the leader going into Sunday's final round at Keller GC in St. Paul.

"I like playing the course longer," Dutoit said. "It's not that I'm all that much of a long-hitter. I just think it's more fun when it's longer."

His advantage is two strokes over the MGA's 2011 Player of the Year, Sammy Schmitz, who has already won two tournaments this year (the State Publinx Mid-Amateur and the MGA Mid-Players' Championship) and Kane Bauer. Bauer might have been tied with Dutoit for the lead, had it not been for the brutal 17th hole, a 220-yard par-3 that played dead into the wind.

There were myriad doube-bogey 5's made on the hole, and Bauer was one of the victims.

David Smith, the 2010 State Publinx champ, was one of five players tied for fourth place with 73's. Also at 73 were Dylan Gergen, Hudson Carpenter, Collin Lervick and Keith Piotrowski.

Dutoit birdied the 165-yard, par-3 third (East Nine), bogeyed the fifth (395 yards, par 4) and birdied the 545-yard, par-5 sixth on the way to a front nine 35. His nine-hole scores of 35 on the front (East) and 34 on the back (West) were also the same in the first round at the state tournament.

On the back (West), he birdied the 540-yard, par-5 11, another hole that played dead into the wind, but gave the stroke back when he bogeyed the short (340-yard) 13th. So he was 1 under with four holes to go.

 Coming down the stretch on the second day in the high school tournament, Dutoit missed the green at the 15th (440, par 4) and then bogeyed the 16th (400, par 4), 17th and 18th (390, par 4). He played those same holes 2 under in Round 1 of the TC Championship, thanks to birdies at the 15th and 16th.  

Twin Cities Championship

At Bunker Hills Golf Course

Par 72, 7,025 yards

Coon Rapids

First-round results 

1. Jon Dutoit, Chaska Town Course         69

T2. Sammy Schmitz, Valleywood              71

T2. Kane Bauer, Hastings                           71

T4. Keith Piotrowski, Bolstad/University   73

T4. David Smith, Rush Creek                     73

T4. Collin Lervick, Minnetonka                   73

T4. Dylan Gergen, Mendakota                   73

T4. Hudson Carpenter, Stillwater              73

9. Steve Hjortness, Eastwood                    74

T10. Jordan Hawkinson, Purple Hawk    75

T10. Sam Jensen, Goodrich                      75

T10. Andrew Althoff, Cannon GC             75

T10. Michael Cloer, Eagle Valley             75

T10. Jon Holmes, Valleywood                  75